Lewis Hamilton is new to Ferrari and for the first time, will be driving a car which is nothing like Mercedes. And to get accustomed to his new mean machine before the season opens this month, the F1 driver has got several modifications made in the design of the steering wheel layout as well as the clutch and gearbox paddle to resemble what he worked with at Mercedes for more than a decade. Ferrari has been cooperating with Hamilton to make him adjust to the new car in the best way possible.
Lewis Hamilton gets Ferrari modified as per his needs
Talking about driving a Ferrari after being so used to Mercedes, Hamilton had said during the testing in Bahrain, “It's rare that you jump in and it just fits.” He said the steering wheel looked completely different at Ferrari than what he had used in Mercedes. "All the switch settings are completely different. The software is different and everything. I am adapting to a car that's made quite differently to what I've worked with in the past," he revealed.
This is not the first time Hamilton has got alterations made in a car’s steering wheel. Even when he joined Mercedes after leaving McLaren, he asked his new company to change the steering wheel design as it was “way too complex” than what he was used to. His choice of making a car adjust to his needs and not vice versa remains justified when one looks at the massive success record of the winner of seven Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles.
According to Autosport.com, the gear paddle now has a new shape with thinner levers positioned higher and a different coating on the outer edge to improve grip.
Hamilton’s finger casing has been custom-made using 3D printing and is much different from what his teammate Charles Leclerc uses at Ferrari.
It is to be noted, the hardware remains the same and it’s the layout of the buttons and rotary dials that has been changed by Ferrari to suit Hamilton’s muscle memories with Mercedes.
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